Sugar poll postal votes close

Cane growers in Queensland and New South Wales are being asked to vote on a plan to close down BSES research stations and develop and new body called Sugar Research Australia.

The CEO of lobby group Canegrowers, Steve Greenwood, says of the 4,500 voting papers sent out, just over 3,000 have already been returned.

"The indication we're getting is that a lot of people have voted yes, they've understood the importance of this issue, they believe this is the best way forward for the future of our industry because research extension and development is so important for our industry particularly," he said.

The chairman of the Australian Cane Farmers Association, Don Murday, says the voting process has been confusing.

"I think because of the confusion there's a lot of people who may not vote at all and what I'm saying, and I'm appealing to growers, if they're uncertain vote and vote no, or don't vote, but if you do vote, vote no," he said.